Loading device for autotrucks.



I R; 's. MAXWELL. momma DEVICE FOR AUTOTRUCKS.

"APPLICATION SILED JUNE 30, 19l6.

- Patented Jun 26, 1917.

(NVEN 750/? R0 40/7 3.: Mai we AJTK is a specification.

ni LrH s. MAXW LL,- orron'rLAnn, onneomnssienon drone-Herr gi o Junta m.

- PARKER, or ron'rrann, onneon- LOADING nnvron non remedies;

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 26, 1917.

Application m ntra, 1916. Serial No. 106,955.

To aZZal/hohm't may concerni Be it knownthat I, RALPII S. MAXWELL, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Portland, county of Multno-' 1111111, State of Oregon, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Loading Devices for Antotrucks, of which the following "My invention relates to an automobile truck of which the floor of the body is provided with driven rollers operable to facilitate the loading and unloading of the truck. One of the main objects of my invention is to provide simple and eflicient means, for the purpose mentioned, especially adapted for use 'on auto trucks of the present preferred type.

It is further the object of this invention to take the roller driving-power from the auto engine, at the same time so to arrange the transmission as to operate silently. Also,

to place the roller driving mechanism in the f longitudinal center of the truck body, and

' thus in a more protected and out of-th'e way position."

Other features of my invention, as well as l the detailstl'iereof, are hereinafter fully described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which f tion, of a truck equippedwit-h my improved I section, showing parts of the driving. mechanism.

a represents an automobile truck, of which b are the 'wheels, 0 the power-plant, (Z the longitudinal chassis. beams, and f the floor, spacedzabove the chassis beams (Z by cross beams g. h is a rigid inclinedtailboard of 4'5 the type commonly 'used on lumber trucks. The type of truck sho n in the drawings is one commonly known as a worm driven truck, that is, one in which the longitudinal propeller shaft 2' is provided with aworm adapted to drive a worm gear onilie rear I I I 0 Q 0 axle. The variable transmission gearing is indicated in its entirety by j and transmits i speed from the power plant 0 to the propeller shaft 2'.

A me devices which form niy invention- Figure 1 isa'side elevation, partly in sec-.

' therewith.

- I areadapted to operate, for the'greater part, while the machine is standing still, I find it necessary totake power from an engine element, and in my present case I have shown an extended stud shaft is which forms an extension ofthe engine shaft running.

through the transmission gear j. The rear end of said shaft is journaled in a bracket'l supported from the chassis beams d, Y as shown'in Fig.2. Loosely mounted on said shaft are the sprockets'm, n, the latter being made with opposed clutch faces 0-, p. Slidably keyed on the shaft 'k, between the sprockets m, a, is a clutch sleeve The latter is normally driven at all times, while the sprockets m, at, when not engaged with the said clutch sleeve, are inactive. However, when the clutch sleeve is shifted into engagement with either of the clutch faces of the sprockets, that corresponding sprocketwillbe caused to rotate with the shaft is. As a means for controllingthis clutch mechanism, I provide an operating lever r, to which is pivoted a longitudinal shaft is. slidably mounted in bearings t beneath the floor of the truck. Fixed on said shaft 8 is a shifteryoke a, and the operation of the lever 1" will cause said clutch mechanism to be placed either in neutral or in active-engagement with eitherof the sprockets, as selected Rotatably mounted in boxes. 0 on the floor of the truck are the transverse rollers w, said rollers being provided near their iniddleportion with worin gears 00, the outer diameters of which are slightly smaller than that of the rollers. A longitudinal shaft y is journaled in boxes 2 3 on the floor of the truck, said shaft having a fixed thereon worms 3, which are in engagegears being so arranged that the rollers will always be driven together in one direction.

Sprockets l, 5 are rigidly fixed on the shaft 1 3' above the sprockets 'm, n, and idler sprockets 6' are mounted on opposite sides of the sprocket 5 and in the same .vertical plane A drive chain 7 forms a direct drive between the sprocket n and. the sprocket 4E, and a drive chain 8 forms a reversing drive between the sprocket m and the sprocket 5, the direction of travel of i these chains being shown by the arrows in Fig, 2. lVhen the clutch mechanism is dis- ;.ngaged, the sprockets m, n will idle, and

the rollers w will remain inactive. When,

however, the'clutch is engaged so as to cause the sprocket n to rotate, a direct drive will be transmitted to the rollers w and they will be caused to rotate clockwise. When, however, the clutch mechanism is engaged so as to place the sprocket m. in driving state,'the

shaft 3 will be driven in a reverse direction and the rollers will be caused to rotate counter-clockwise. the rear roller 10 is an idler rolle 10, the highest portion of which is slightly below the plane of the top of said rear roller. 11 represents a load carried by the truck.

The general operation is as follows:

lVhen the load 11 is to be rolled off the truck, the lever 1' is thrown backward, whereupon the sprocket on will be placed in driving engagement and the rollers will rotate counter-clockwise, ther eby rolling the load backward. \Vhen the center. of gravity of the load has passed over the rear roller w, the rear end of the load will tip downward. The load will then be caused to'bear directly on the idler roller 10 and lifted off the roller 10, so as to remove all stress from the latter, and in view of the fact that the roller 10 is an idler, it will adjust its speed of rotation to the speed at which the load rolls oii.

IV hen the load 11 is to be rolled onto the truck, the latter is first backed in under the load, which is mounted on a loading device known as a yard truck, which may be of the type shown by me in my application for patent filed May 16, 1916, Serial Number 97,963. The front end of the load is thus caused to drop down on the rear roller '10, and when the lever-r is then thrown forward so as to engage the sprocket n, the rollers '10 will rotate clockwise and carry the load onto. the truck to the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. l.

I- claim:

1. In an auto truck having a longitudinal drive-shaft, the combination of a pair of gears loose on the drive-shaft, a clutchsleeve on the drive-shaft, means on the gears and the clutch-sleeve for engaging the latter with either of the former, a supplemental shaft journaled longitudinally in the truck body, a plurality of transverse rollers on the truck body, driving connections be- Mounted in boxes 9 behind BEST AVAlLABLE COP tween the supplemental shaft and the transverse rollers. companion gears fast on tho supplemental shaft, operating connections betweenthe related gears, and means for shifting the clutch sleeve.

' 2. In an auto truck having a longitudinal drive-shafnthe combination of a pair of gears loose on the drive-shaft, a clutchsleeve on the drive-shaft, means on the gears and the clutch-sleeve for engaging the latter with either of the former, a supplemental shaft journaled in the longitudinal center of the truck body, a plurality of transverse rollers on the truck body, cooperating worm-gear elements carried by the supplemental shaft and the transverse rollers, companion gears fast on the supplemental shaft, operating connections between the related gears, and means for shifting the clutchsleeve.

3. In an auto'truck having a longitudinal drive-shaft, the combination of a'pair of sprocket gears loose on the drive-shaft, such sprocket gears provided with opposed clutch faces, a clutchrsleeve on' the drive-shaft adapted for being engagedwith either of said sprocket gears, a supplemental shaft journa led longitudinally in the truck body, a: plurality of transverse rollers on the truck body, driving connections between the supplemental shaft and the transverse rollers,

conipanion sprocket gears fast on thesupplemental shaft, sprocket chains connecting the related gears, and means for'shift ug the clutch sleeve.

4:. In an auto truck having a longitudinal drive-shaft, the combination'of a pair of spro'dket gears loose on the drive-shaft. such sprocket gears provided with opposed clutch faces. a clutch-sleeve on the drive-shaft adapted for being engagedwith either of said sprocket gears, journaled longitudinally in the truck body, a plurality of transverse rollers on the truckhody, cooperating \vori-n-gear elements carried by the supplemental shaft and the tra:

verse rollers. companion sprocket gears faston the supplemental shaft, sprocket ('llhlilS connecting therelated gears, and means tor shifting the clutchsleeve.

RALPH. S. MAXIVELL.

a supplemental shaft- 

